Beef - Season 2 (Netflix) 

By: Rachel Brodeur

The problem with producing a hit is that it becomes a hard act to follow. Netflix’s Beef debuted in 2023 and its first season won 8 Emmy Awards, 3 Golden Globes, 4 Critics Choice Awards, and 3 SAG Awards. It was an unpredictable unhinged comedy about the tragic consequences that ensue when people give in to their anger and desires for vengeance. The second season features a whole new cast, but it does keep its original showrunner and creator, Lee Sung Jin (Dave, Tuca & Bertie), and remains an entertaining, unpredictable spectacle of human folly. 

Season 2 of Beef starts with a fight. However, another season about anger feels too obvious. Yes, of course the anger is there, but this season is rooted in ambition. The characters all seem to feel entitled to a greater status than they currently have. The season features Oscar Isaac (Frankenstein, Moon Knight) as the manager of an elite country club and Carey Mulligan (Drive, The Great Gatsby) as his wife.  By most measures, they are rich people, but against the backdrop of the elite club members, they’re clearly only wealthy adjacent. Even further down the rungs of the socioeconomic ladder are a young couple played by Cailee Spaeny (Alien: Romulus) and Charles Melton (Riverdale) as workers Ashley and Austin. Having witnessed the opening fight scene and recorded the evidence, Ashley seizes the opportunity to have leverage over the couple. The beauty of Beef is in its unpredictability. Characters make decisions based on unchecked emotion and audiences relish in the dramatic irony of the impending snowball of consequences. The consequences themselves are an assortment of violence, tragedy and sometimes luck.

Season 2 of Beef does feel different than its previous seasons and this is partially due to its focus on wealth. The country club setting centers a wealthy client base and contrasts them with the workers that serve them. Because of this disparity, the series actually feels referential to the HBO hit White Lotus. Both highlight the absurdity of what money can buy, and make a satirical commentary on the moral fortitude of the wealthy elite. Typically, a plot would rest on the old rich boss being the villain, however, with Austin and Ashley’s myopic views and questionable actions it is unclear who is the real victim of the story. They look around and see their lives, and they feel entitled to luxury that is not theirs, yet they somehow feel morally in the right simply because they think their boss is worse. Beef begs the question of if it is okay to do bad things if you’re doing them to bad people. It is a series where flawed characters make corrupting decisions and the resulting drama and disaster are incredibly entertaining to watch. 

Rachel’s Rating: 7/10

Season 2 of Netflix’s Beef features a different cast and a sharper focus on ambition and class. While it doesn’t quite live up to its debut season, it still features dramatic action and surprising turns that make it worth watching.